SpiderBaddie
by asksillysisters
Summary: Two weeks ago, high schooler Anna Parker got bitten by a slimy spider...and received spider powers. Two weeks before that, she realized her feelings for her school nurse cousin and her police officer sister. "If I just keep rescuing cats from trees, maybe these gross feelings will just go away? I NEED MORE PUSSY...wait, NOT LIKE THAT."
1. Chapter 1

_I never should've told Rapunzel about my...accident. I know I've told myself that ten times a day, every day for the last week._

 _But I think I'm finally about to exhaust her endless supply of_ _ **chill.**_

Students ambled past the nurse's office, heading to and from homeroom that Monday morning, but more than a few paused by the door and waved to Crenshaw High School's head nurse.

Rapunzel clearly didn't have time to stop and make small talk, toting several boxes of bandages under one arm and a case of antibacterial ointment under the other. She flashed a nervous grin and nodded towards the clump of students.

"Sorry, guys. Jacob, Della, Ajit...we can do more splint practice if you stop by during homeroom. Or tomorrow morning. Or... **whenever** , just not this minute...sorry. Have a fantastic day."

Hands clenching and unclenching a white, heavily starched cot-sheet. Teal eyes scanned the length of the pale blue, drawn curtain...but quickly flicked down at the flicker of a shadow. Heavy-buckled, leather boots. An uneasy gulp, chin drooping.

 _Oops. Again._

With an exasperated huff, Rapunzel yanked open the curtain, and quickly closed it right behind her. Eyes flicked from a faded black _Three Days Grace_ t-shirt frayed and ripped at the hem, and down to dark blue jeans sporting nasty tears on each knee. Yanking on a pair of blue latex gloves with two sharp **snaps** , Rapunzel cleared her throat and brushed fingertips under Anna's chin. "Eyes up."

Anna flinched at the contact, cheeks rosy as she gulped and nodded. Then groaned. Then chuckled self consciously before going rigid. "I...I told Elsa I was getting a ride with you this morning."

 _Does she even believe me any more? Is this...god damnit, it_ _ **has to**_ _be making things harder for you._

Rapunzel let out another heavy exhale, then brandished her ophthalmoscope as she waved it past Anna's eyes. "I am Jack's utter lack of surprise." Fingertips slid from chin to cheek, and then over to the opposite cheek, as Rapunzel scrutinized both of Anna's ears.

"Any blood today?"

Anna nodded at that, then ducked her head as she raised her right arm and turned her forearm outward. A rough, dark abrasion stretched from her elbow to her wrist, and her meek smile fell right into a miserable grimace as Rapunzel began to clean and disinfect. An uneasy stammer. "I **am** getting better. I think. I smack into walls less...pretty sure, anyway."

 _Or maybe I've just clunked my head against steel cross-beams so much that I just forget them faster than I clobber them._

Just then, the late bell rang, and several students in the hallway switched from walking to running as they zipped by the doorway.

Slipping off her gloves, Rapunzel turned Anna's hand palm-up, and began to wind a thick strip of gauze over the treated wound. "Okay. We're gonna go over this again. I don't even know why...are **those** your good jeans?"

Momentarily dumbstruck by Rapunzel's left hand brushing against the frayed fabric, **and** her knee, Anna jerked her head up and nodded quickly. Then, she shrugged...and hung her head once more. "Giorgio says I might be able to do deliveries soon. I can...get myself new jeans…"

Rapunzel groaned, then dropped Anna's bandaged arm in favor of snatching her cheeks and pinching firmly. "Anna, you **know** I'm not talking about **that** , and...and…" Brow furrowed and lips pursed as Rapunzel trailed off. She went from pinching to smooshing her palms against Anna's cheeks...and finally hung **her** head. An uneasy, warm murmur. "Did you do something good this morning?"

"I got a kitten out of a tree."

 _Then I fell out of the tree._

"I know it doesn't sound like much, but I'm...you know, I climbed that thing no problem. Like some kind of cross between a monkey and...and..."

At that, Rapunzel barked out a sharp laugh and wrapped Anna up in a fierce hug.

"Did you wear your mask?"

A slow nod from Anna, who let her chin fall on Rapunzel's shoulder, and failed miserably at getting to stop her stomach from flip-flopping all over the place.

 _I'm trying to be good. To_ _ **do**_ _good...even though I'm bad._

Two phones at Rapunzel's desk started to ring at the same time, and she pulled away from Anna with a weary grumble. "Better get to class. I'll cover for you if Elsa suspects anything."

Already missing the warmth, Anna nodded quickly and ran a hand over her bandaged arm. "Thanks, Punzie. Sorry. I mean... **thanks.** " She snatched up her red bookbag, slung it over a shoulder, and hustled to the door...before Rapunzel's stern tone caught her by surprise.

"Anna."

The pain in her arm already forgotten, Anna turned and pressed a hand against the doorway. "Um...yeah?

 _Help, her blue bunny scrubs are too precious. Help...I'm bad._

Smoothing out the front of her blue bunny scrubs, Rapunzel pressed a hand against her collar, and hunched over a bit. Took several shuffling steps towards her desk...and shot Anna a stare filled with both apology and concern. "Take it slow. Remember…"

Anna immediately smacked a palm against her forehead, then shook her head...and assumed the same position as Rapunzel. "...right. Play the part." With head down and a hand pressed against her collar, Anna shot Rapunzel one last meek smile as she shuffled on down the hallway to her first class.

 _I'm Anna Parker._

 _Some day I hope I can be good enough...so that people stop worrying about me._

 _Two weeks ago, I got bitten by a spider...and I swear it was the color of slime. Slime spider._

 _Thing is, I used to have a sort of messed-up heart...but now it's all better. Like magic. And on top of that…_

Buzzing phone. Anna fished it out from a jeans pocket, and couldn't help but let out a guilty little sigh at the destroyed state of her new jeans.

One message. Two messages.

 _Now I've got these...powers. And I want to do something with them. Something...really good…_

A rosy blush rushed to Anna's cheeks as she scanned the message from Rapunzel.

' _This weekend we can go up to the National Park. You and me. If you want to practice. I'm so proud of you...but I was_ _ **always**_ _proud of you.'_

Anna's smile slipped into a tremulous frown. She shoved her phone right back in her pocket and slowed her shuffle a bit more. Several teachers passed her by, headed in the opposite direction, and they greeted her with warmth and understanding.

 _If I walked regularly, people would suspect...something. But I don't want to walk._

 _I. Want. To. Run._

' _Anna, I'm sorry I missed dinner. And breakfast. I know I'm basically sleeping at the station these days...but I'm still worried about you. Please let Rapunzel drive you to school...it's much safer that way. Go slow. Have a good day today...and do good things. I love you. ~Elsa'_

Despite surging with energy, Anna forced herself to shuffle along even slower. Head down and crimson face obscured.

 _But I'm_ _ **not**_ _good. I've got gross thoughts. Bad thoughts...and no amount of_ _ **doing good**_ _...can change that._

 _I am...SpiderBaddie._


	2. Chapter 2

Without a shift at _Tomatoma Pizza_ that afternoon, Anna snatched up her bookbag and shuffled down the hall as quickly as she dared. In short order, however, the sophomore ran right into a wall of students twenty deep as they filed out of the main entrance. Cheeks rosy, Anna fidgeted in place and shuffled along as she peeked here and there for a pathway to slip through.

 _No call from Punzie, so that means she's staying late to do first aid stuff with the group she advises._

The wall of students didn't budge, and Anna stayed put, concerned that if she tried to wiggle her way through the crowd...she'd end up bowling people right over.

 _Maybe if Elsa isn't going into the station until later...maybe I could go for round two of not burning dinner?_

Eyes flicked down as another text message arrived, and Anna instinctively yanked her maroon jacket hood up as warmth flooded her face.

' _NaNa, I'm gonna be extra late tonight, so I sent in an order at that Mediterranean place Elsa likes. Want to pick it up and surprise her with dinner? Be careful going home, and don't forget your mask if you take any shortcuts.'_

Blushing hotly, Anna cursed under her breath and pocketed her phone again.

 _How well can Punzie read my mind, anyway? Hopefully not_ _ **too well**_ _, or else I'm screwed. C'mon, stupid blob of people...move!_

Antsy frustration began to drown out pathetic embarrassment as the mob of students behind Anna pressed up against in eager anticipation of freedom. Another text message drew her attention, and she pressed the top of her head against the _Transformers_ backpack of the senior wrestler ahead of her.

' _And if you happen to catch our favorite officer_ _ **before**_ _she showers, take a picture of the legendary bed-head for me!'_

Anna swallowed thickly, then slammed her eyes shut and nudged her head against the _Transformers_ backpack again.

 _Elsa's bed-head. Those grey silk pajamas. So soft, like that night I had the fever and she left work._

 _She didn't know I got bit. She just thought...I was sick._

Dry mouth. Sweaty palms. Fists clenching and unclenching.

 _Just sweating all over her, but she held me anyway. I could hold her like...like that…_

Letting out a frustrated exhale, Anna curled her toes in her sneakers and mashed her forehead against the backpack.

 _Holy shit that's so perverted Elsa would hate hate hate..._ _ **ugh, move!**_

Just then, the clump of students in front of Anna let out a collective groan. Some hollered and some cursed and a few shot flummoxed glances backwards. The entire group lurched forwards, stumbling and collapsing all over each other as they spilled out through the doors and landed face-first on the concrete.

"The hell?!"

"Who's pushing?!"

"Dude we're **all** pushing."

"Yeah but somebody back there's fuckin' hulking out."

Meanwhile, Anna lay trapped underneath several other sprawled-out students, and dared not move lest she accidentally hurl two or three of them clear of the school grounds. She kept her eyes shut and grew intimately acquainted with the taste of the concrete sidewalk. Knees and sneakers dug into her back, and she bit back a dark chuckle at the commotion that flared up when several students feared they had killed her.

Clutching at her chest and forcing haggard breaths, Anna slapped on a weak smile and hammed up her reassurance.

"It's...it's cool. Fine...all good here...think someone pushed...me…"

 _Maybe I just...wanna cuddle them. That's not so wrong. I'm not...that bad._

* * *

Forest Hills Apartment Complex, seventeen floors of tightly packed suburban rentals, and Anna relished taking the stairs ever since her mortal enemy slime spider chomped on her. In the past, she'd have been sucking wind and taking forced sit-down breaks every other floor. Now, she bounded up the stairs three and four and five at a time.

 _Dinner! Elsa! Park with Punzie this weekend!_

With one final leap, Anna soared over the last eight steps, and jabbed a finger at the seventeenth floor door as she grinned down at her bag of take-out gyros.

 _No swinging-practice when I've got special romantic-foods to deliver! I mean... **damnit**..._

Blushing at her slip, Anna directed her pitiful scowl away from the food...and blanched upon spying her still-affixed arm bandage. She chuckled weakly and slid a thumb down through the fabric, easily tearing it away and revealing only a faint, red splotch.

 _Elsa's got enough on her mind with work and everything. Dear me, don't forget the simple stuff._

With that, Anna breezed through the door and made her way down to room twenty three. Anna hadn't expected her sister to be awake yet, but all it took was a slight jingle of her keys as she hunted for the right one.

 _Hands don't get sticky any more from, uh... **unplanned web.** Bonus._

A dry, musical hum flitted through the door.

Anna promptly shoved her keys back in her pocket and locked her body at attention.

 ** _Every time now it's like this rush! A hundred thousand million billion little tickles and gigantic tickles telling me there's somebody super close by and and_** _and..._

"Oh...oh, Anna." Rubbing bleary eyes, glanced down and half-heartedly went about smoothing out her rumpled, silk pajamas. A sleepy half-smile as blonde hair snaked every which way in unruly tangles. "Sorry, I...just got up. Still a mess."

Sneakers rooted to the floor, and the _I Dream of Jeannie_ welcome mat at the doorstep. Anna gulped and fumbled with the take-out bag.

 _...and I love them._

Anna puffed out her cheeks, shook her head vigorously, and held out the take-out bag she'd brought home. "No no, you...you look like dinner!" A gulp, followed by a miserable cringe. "I **brought you.** Uh...for."

 _So help me I will_ _ **web my stupid mouth shut!**_

A faint, affectionate smile from Elsa, who curled a hand around the free plastic loop of the take-out bag. "I heard Rapunzel's staying late today. Just you and me, then." She stared, blue eyes warm and lingering. "Did you do good, today?"

 _These stupid heightened senses make_ _ **everything**_ _more intense and god damnit just give her the bag._ Dizzy from her jackhammering heart, Anna managed a contrite nod and extended the bag another few inches. "Did my best. Was, you know...pretty okay."

 _You're pretty and I'm_ _ **not**_ _okay._

It took every ounce of awareness Anna had to swallow a flustered yelp when Elsa reached past the bag and squeezed her wrist. A gentle tug...and Anna wilted under the hint of sternness in her older sister's eyes.

"Anna...we talked about this. This bag **and** your backpack. Just...be careful, okay?"

Anna squeaked breathily in reply and let go of the take-out bag just as Elsa pulled it away. " _R-right. Careful...good._ "

 _I'd lift you up right now. One arm. Twirl you around...and take away all your worry._

"Come inside and we'll eat together. I want to hear all about your day."

 _But spiders...killed mom and dad._

Anna nodded dumbly, cursed under her breath as her eyes drifted down to Elsa's pajama top half-shoved-down her pants in a wrinkled mess.

 _I'll never tell you what I've become..._ _ **or**_ _how I feel._

Inches lower. Anna bit back a miserable whine, her loose shoelace caught in a loose floorboard, and she crashed to the floor.

 _ **But we are gonna get that stupid loose floorboard fixed or my name isn't...SPIDERBADDIE.**_


	3. Chapter 3

_Eleven days earlier:_

 _I swear. I swear I swear_ _ **I swear**_ _...I'll never fingerpaint again._

Curled up in her purple _Hot Wheels_ racecar bed, Anna dared not move. With the sweet tingles of her release long since faded, each minute dragged on in one interminable cloud of regret. Eyes falling shut again, Anna gritted her teeth and rolled back onto her stomach...with care. Face mashed against a pillow emblazoned with Danica Patrick's face.

 _I...I think I need help._

Shuffle. Shuffle. Fidget.

Right hand clenching the underside of the pillow...and squeezing. Extra tense squeezes every time Anna so much as wiggled her left hand.

Distinctly uncomfortable tugging, and her mind raced with cold dread.

 _I'll tear something. I'll...I'll injure myself._

Tears pricked the corners of Anna's eyes, and she let out a muffled grumble as she rubbed her face firmly against her pillow.

 _There's nobody else in the world like me. So I don't know..._ _ **I just don't.**_ _Is that...is that how it's_ _ **always**_ _going to happen for me, now?_

Another gingerly tug. A sharp sting, followed by a dull ache creeping up along Anna's groin made her freeze yet again. Struggling to steady her shallow breaths, Anna reached out for any possible distraction...and suddenly, there it was.

A sad, half-smile. Still-frame images of Elsa sporting a mop of cooked spaghetti on her head. Rapunzel, rosy cheeks and scrunched nose slathered in tomato sauce. Anna shivered, gritted her teeth, and squeezed her thighs around her trapped hand.

 _This is what I get. My...bad karma pile-up. It's not that I pictured...butts…_

Hushed farewells trickled upstairs, and they stole Anna's breath...but not her guilt.

 _It was their butts. I'm bad. I'm..._ _ **bad**_ _...and this is what I get._

* * *

" _Call me over lunch...and stay safe."_

" _You should be_ _ **asleep**_ _by the time I'm sitting down to my midnight...lunch."_

" _Uh-huh."_

Unintelligible murmurs.

" _Is Anna getting sick again? She went up to bed so early tonight. It...it wasn't anything I…"_

" _She's fine. It's taking her a little while to, you know...get used to your reassignment. Me, too. Seriously...be safe, Elsa."_

" _I will. Always am. Um...walk me to my car, please?"_

" _Score."_

" _Hmm…"_

The dull click of the front door falling shut. Seconds. Minutes. Hours.

Petrified teal eyes flicked down, peering underneath a black and red _Hot Wheels_ comforter. Anna grimaced, tried to shuffle her bare legs, and stared dumbly as her grey underwear wiggled down to her knees.

Warmth flooded her face again as fresh tears threatened to spring forth.

 _I don't know my own body any more...but I need help._

Another few minutes spent wriggling carefully, and only when Anna felt her underwear slip down off of her bare feet did she find anything resembling confidence. Confidence to roll onto her opposite side, draw the comforter around her waist with her free right hand, and gingerly sit up.

 _First. First, I need a better look at this disaster._

Curled fingers on Anna's left hand flexed experimentally, but the sticky webbing between her thighs held fast, and she bit down hard on her bottom lip in order to stifle a frightened whimper.

 _Punzie's a nurse. My school nurse. If I can't figure out what the hell…_

Standing up was a piece of cake in comparison to the awkward waddle-shuffle Anna found herself employing in order to avoid uncomfortable tugs and pinches below. She arrived at her ajar bedroom door, rested her forehead against it for a full minute, and finally screwed up her courage.

 _If I'm stumped, I'll ask Punzie. I'll just...tell her..._ _ **some**_ _truth._

With that, Anna bonked her forehead against the door, thrusting it open, and she shuffled into the brightly lit hallway.

* * *

Having just climbed the staircase with a basket of clean, folded laundry in her arms, Rapunzel heard a dull thud...and glanced down the hall. Eyes widened, and a tiny smile grew as she watched Anna shuffle out of her bedroom...all wrapped up her comforter.

A slow turn. Not releasing the fistful of comforter even as Anna drew her bedroom door shut again. She turned...

...and Rapunzel spoke up with a warm, curiosity-tinged grin. "NaNa?"

Face ashen, Anna let out a hoarse shriek and fumbled towards the far wall. Puffy, red eyes slammed shut, and she threw out her right arm even as she smacked against the wall and crumpled to the floor. The comforter fell away.

Eyes wide with fright, Rapunzel flung the laundry basket back over her head and downstairs as though it had burned her. " **Anna?! What's wrong?** " She raced down the hall and flopped down by Anna's side, lips trembling as she swept one shaky hand against Anna's cheek and the other gliding over her knees with a comforting squeeze. "Anna. _Anna._ _NaNa_ , I'm here, baby."

Dizzy and with tears streaming down her face, Anna stammered hotly...but still leaned into the touch.

 _I'm bad. I'm gross._ _ **Everything's wrong with me**_ _and and and and_ _ **and…**_

A deep, shuddering gulp of air. Red-rimmed eyes and trembling legs and desperate, loving trust.

"I'm **sorry.** Something's just... **wrong**...with me. And... **I'm sorry, Rapunzel.** "

* * *

 _Present-day:_

Lying in bed, Anna stared up into the dark...and at her splayed-out hands. Turning them over and over, bending one finger at a time.

 _So I told her. I wanted to..._ _ **needed to**_ _...tell someone._

Zip. Zip. Small globs of webbing shot from Anna's left wrist, into her right hand...and vice versa. Zip.

Zip.

Zip.

Anna stared on, her cold dread from days prior a distant memory as each shot filled her with a new understanding... **and** curiosity.

 _And...nothing changed. Rapunzel, she's still the same Rapunzel. With me the whole way, always listening and understanding and...and...so_ _ **patient.**_

Cheeks pinking, Anna flipped her ball of used webbing into the wastecan across her room...and shuffled her thighs together under her _Hot Wheels_ comforter.

 _My fear...my being scared..._ _ **that**_ _made it stronger. I couldn't calm down until she showed me that. Until she…_

Fingers slid down, beneath the waistband. Curious...and unafraid.

 **Wanting.**

Moments later, though, Anna licked her lips and let out a petulant growl. She rolled onto her stomach, flipped her pillow over with her free right hand, and mashed her face against the cool fabric.

 _She did her nurse-thing. Her...her_ _ **love**_ _-thing. It wasn't...it's not...like_ _ **that**_ _for her. She just…_

Letting out a ragged, exhausted exhale, Anna let her eyes fall shut...but kept her left hand right where it was. No motion, just cupped...at the memory of **another** hand.

 _She just...helped me get off._

Frustrated heat rolled up through Anna's body, and she rattled off a string of fierce curses as she yanked her left hand free and smacked **both** against the mattress over and over again.

 _ **I MEAN SHE HELPED ME TO GET IT OFF GOD DAMNIT I FUCKING DESERVED EVERY SECOND OF THAT COOCHIE-WEB-HELL!**_

Just then, there came a knock at Anna's door, and Rapunzel's sweetly concerned voice carried through.

"NaNa? Sorry...are you okay in there?"

Anna let out a mortified exhale, turned to reply...and promptly yelped as the wheel-stilts holding up her bed all snapped simultaneously. The bed frame crashed to the floor and Anna took one great bounce, before smacking against the floor in a flail of limbs and squeals.

 _She loves me. I absolutely positively_ _ **don't**_ _deserve it...but she loves me._

A miserable groan as Anna **heard** her bedroom door creak open.

"Sorry, Punzie."

A moment later, Anna froze and went limp on the bedroom floor. Rapunzel's fingers combing through her mussed-up hair scattered the fear and disgust...until only the love remained. An affectionate smile as Rapunzel clicked her tongue and surveyed the busted bed.

"My strong-lady."


	4. Chapter 4

_I can't remember the last time I saw Elsa on a Wednesday. She's always home and in bed before Rapunzel and I leave for school in the morning...and_ _ **never**_ _home by the time I get back. Her boss captain guy must think she's pretty great at patrolling parking meters and writing tickets to ask her to do time and a half every Wednesday._

The sun hung low along the Manhattan skyline as Anna pressed her forehead against the passenger-side window. Eyes flicked from skyscraper top to protruding flagpole. Uneasy hesitation...but something more, as well.

 _She's fine right where she is, though. Puttering around in that neat little golf cart with police car stickers and a bajillion flashing lights._

In moments, misty fog covered half of the window, and Anna smiled faintly as she carved swooping arcs into the condensation.

 _Checking off Manhattan city blocks on her digital clipboard thing._

 _Being as_ _ **far away**_ _from actual police-y danger as humanly possible._

"Are you getting web-streaks on my nice, filthy windows?"

Blushing hotly at Rapunzel's giggle-punctuated accusation, Anna cringed and yanked her right hand back against her collar. She piped up self-consciously. "N-no." A bashful glance across the pickup truck's center console caused her to quickly wilt under twinkling, brown eyes. "Maybe."

When Rapunzel's reply was just a hum and an arched eyebrow, Anna managed to un-fumble her tongue and stared down at her fingertips. Tiny, sticky bristles on her fingertips, while nearly invisible to everyone else, stood out plainly for her to observe. Putting on a show of confidence, Anna turned up her chin and splayed a hand out on the tan center console.

"It's a pickup truck. I think they're **designed** to look better when they're dirtier."

 _And somehow,_ _ **you**_ _not only make a pickup truck work, but..._ _ **but...**_

An awkward little grin. Eyes flicked left...and one eyebrow arched. A moment later, cold sweat broke out over Anna's back, and she eyed the door with ill-concealed panic.

 _ **Flirting?! From MY mouth? It's more likely than you'd...STOP that right now before she gets a clue and and and...TUCK AND ROLL, BADDIE!**_

Chuckling warmly, Rapunzel turned into the _Goodwill_ parking lot, and patted Anna's hand several times.

"We're gonna find you the perfect thing for messing around with you new powers in the city. Something a **little** less conspicuous than my old red and blue pajamas, hmm?"

Sweating bullets, Anna nodded meekly and wondered if real spiders had such overactive sweat glands.

' _Course I didn't like wearing your old pajamas and they definitely didn't smell like you_ _ **wow please shut up, brain!**_

* * *

To ensure complete privacy, Rapunzel barred the entrance to the row of changing rooms...and beckoned Anna over with a finger waggle and a self-satisfied smirk.

"I got you covered, NaNa."

Hanging her head, Anna shuffled along and tried her hardest to swallow all of her sins...while not choking.

 _I'm gonna need to save at **least** ten cats tomorrow to make up for...this._

Humming in approval, Rapunzel alternated between cuffing and uncuffing the long, orange sleeves and leggings of the plain-colored jumpsuit she selected for Anna. "NaNa, can you show me again where your webs come out of? I don't want to accidentally cover them up when I hem these sleeves and see a news report about a screaming spider falling into a garbage truck."

Anna nodded mutely, then flipped her left hand up and brushed a finger against the sticky little groove in her wrist.

 _Ah yes, garbage, my natural environment._

Finally, Anna forced out a weak chuckle, which cut off abruptly when Rapunzel pressed a palm against that sticky spot and teased it, brow furrowed.

 _I enjoy it_ _ **way too much**_ _when you think my powers are neat. When you explore...like that...and please feel free to do it any time because sh_ _ **ut up BRAIN!**_

With a weary sigh, Anna patted the _Janitor_ tag sewn above her right breast pocket. She knew her blush was untameable, so she just ducked her chin and mumbled.

"I look like a ninja janitor who sneaks into peoples' houses at night and unclogs their toilets."

Pausing mid-pants-cuff, Rapunzel looked up from her kneeling position and squeezed the cuff against Anna's leg. She winked and purred encouragingly, " **And** saves their cats."

Anna let out an obstinate huff, but her smile grew anyway, and she smoothed out the fabric around either side of the front zipper. Her eyes widened, and she hummed in approval after noticing the lack of accidental adhesion between her fingertips and the jumpsuit's coarse material.

"Why orange, though? I mean, one color's as good as the next to me…"

After tugging the left pants-leg straight, Rapunzel moved to Anna's right, and nodded towards the second janitor's jumpsuit hanging on the wall-rack. "Also getting you that purple one there. Purple's for using in the city. Orange is for when we head up to the national park to get you some practice. Last thing we need is for some hunter to think they saw a flying spider-reindeer and go all **gun-ho.** You know..."

Blushing a shade darker at the sudden, thoughtful rasp in Rapunzel's voice, Anna shuffled the tips of her sneakers together and gulped. Drew a hand to her collar as her breath quickened...just out of habit? "Y-yeah?"

A brilliant smile lit up Rapunzel's face as she cocked her head to one side and gave a firm tug on the other cuffed pant-leg. "You're capable of so much...you know that? Before. And now."

Bowled over by a sudden and intense rush of **feelings** , Anna stumbled backwards, tripped over seventy eight percent nitrogen and twenty one percent oxygen...and collapsed in a flustered heap.

 _ **LEAPING FUCKIN' LIZARDS SHE'S SAYING SOMETHING SWEET! WHY DO I GOTTA FUCKIN' BADDIE IT UP BY STARING AT HER BOOBS?**_


	5. Chapter 5

Thursday night found the little family sharing dinner, as well as their days. Already dressed for her shift in navy blue slacks, a white button-up shirt, and a black tie, Elsa gave up chasing a pair of lima beans around her plate and stared across the kitchen table. "So, Anna...Rapunzel tells me you have a fan club?"

Eyes wide, Anna inhaled sharply, dropped her burrito on her lap, and let out several miserably hacking coughs. She struggled to clear her throat and catch her breath at the same time and didn't even bother to touch the clumps of rice sticking to her cheeks. She croaked shyly. " _What?_ "

Elsa's cheeks pinked as she sat up straight and glanced at Rapunzel uneasily. A self conscious mumble. "Sorry. Oh...did I get it wrong?"

Puffing out her cheeks, Anna leveled a harassed glare to her left...and didn't miss the slight quirk in Rapunzel's coy smile. " **What.** "

Rapunzel shrugged and tapped an index finger against her nose. "Sorry, was that supposed to be a secret? It's just so cute the way they wait for you outside after school...they're freshmen, right?"

Anna mumbled incoherently, head bowed as she fumbled to collect and reassemble her busted burrito. After a few seconds proved the effort to be futile, she settled for mashing the beans, rice, and tortilla into a lopsided ball. "Yearbook freshmen. They were taking some pictures of my gym class down by the track. I told them some stuff about changing up their camera angles to get better lighting in shots...nothing big." It only took one little bite for the mashed burrito to crumble in her hands, and she dumped it back onto her plate with a bashful quirk of her lips. "I call them Mary Jane, mostly 'cause I always forget who's who."

Rapunzel picked up right where Anna left off, and nudged Elsa's chair with a pink bunny-slippered foot. "Now they want our NaNa to join yearbook club. At least...that's all **she** thinks they want."

Having hunkered down so low that her nose nearly brushed her plate, Anna paused between shoveled bites and shook her head quickly. "Nope, no, no way, uh-uh, this is Rapunzel coming to us with a live report from CrazyTown and…" Her voice trailed right off, and her thoughts ground to a halt, at the brush of fingers against her rice-speckled cheeks.

Elsa rose to her feet, leaned across the table, and made quick work of the face-rice with several swipes. Then...she followed that with several more as the corners of her eyes crinkled with a brilliant smile. "Those framed photos you give us every year for Christmas? You **do** have talent, Anna, and that's the easiest thing to see."

Gulping hotly, Anna managed a meek nod. In moments, her gaze drifted down, desperate for anything to wake up the treadmill-gerbil in her head.

 _Soft._

 _Maybe I should...join._

 _ **Soft.**_

 _Uh...baddie, why are you looking...at…_

A weak chuckle as Anna furrowed her brow and blinked in surprise.

"Sour cream boobs."

 _Lickity..._ _ **ESCAPE THIS SITUATION, BADDIE!**_

Flopping against the back of her chair, Anna let out a dizzy grumble, and shuffled her sneakers against the nearby table leg until her chair rocked back on two legs.

 _One basic fucking sentence and I can't even..._

Rapunzel spied the issue in a second, and slapped a hand over her mouth even as rich laughter spilled out.

Perplexed, Elsa glanced down...and promptly sat back in her chair with a cringe. "Oh... **shoot.** " A giant glob of sour cream lay plastered and dripping from her collar and all the way down to her black belt. She huffed in exasperation, tugged her tie loose, and went right down the front of her shirt in a methodical unfastening of every button as her shoulders slumped.

"Rapunzel, is that cleaners two blocks down still open? I mean I can just iron my other shirt from yesterday but, but shoot shoot, why didn't I return that enormous bowl and **why** did I put the sour cream in it tonight and…"

Pale skin and a small patch of prominent collar-bone freckles drew a flustered yelp from Anna, who frantically shoved herself away from the table. End over end, she crashed to the floor on her chair as her mangled burrito sailed into the living room

Splat.

 _I was_ _ **never**_ _this horny before! This is_ _ **all**_ _because of that dumbass slime spider!_

Having just yanked off her dress shirt, Elsa pitched it into Rapunzel's waiting hands and darted around the table. "Anna?! Rapunzel, **get the keys** , she might be having an arrhythmia and we need to..."

Rapunzel just smiled and shook her head. "I think NaNa's perfectly okay."

Anna kept her eyes slammed shut, loathe to respond to Elsa's voice or touch lest she barf up more sins.

 _ **SpiderBaddie is not okay. NOT OKAY.**_

* * *

Early the next morning, before the sun rose, Rapunzel collected the duffel bag she had packed the night before, collected a sleep-stumbling Anna, and deposited both in her 2003 Dodge Ram Pickup. No sooner had Rapunzel pulled out of the apartment complex parking lot, then Anna had already curled around the black duffel bag and started to snore again. As she slept, new feelings and sensations flitted around the edge of her consciousness.

 _Big aura. Big, super huge aura. It's all red and yellow-y, and it...kinda tickles._

 _It's right here, too. Close...extra close to me._

With the flick of a button on the center console, Rapunzel watched from the corner of an eye as Anna's seat reclined to a near-horizontal position. A warm, still-sleepy grin spread across Rapunzel's face, and she ruffled Anna's bangs for nearly a mile...before pulling into a McDonalds drive-through.

Anna wriggled at the contact and tried to inch closer.

 _ **Warm! That's**_ _...it's love._

Back on the road as the scent of breakfast sandwiches and juice filled the air. Ideas and sensations with no names slowly began to **get** names as Anna felt them...over and over and over again. Tingling.

 _That's Rapunzel. Me. How I...about her._

 _...BaddieSense…_

 _But I just love her...and that's...what this feeling is._

Down the highway another five miles. LeAnn Womack on low volume.

Shifting until her face mashed against the duffel bag, Anna slung a plaid pajama-clad leg around it.

 _Something's coming. Or...getting closer._

Humming along with the country radio station, Rapunzel's smile grew, and she kissed her left palm before pressing it against her window.

' _Greater Manhattan Police Department'_

In her sleep, Anna fidgeted again.

 _Big...so big. Not as close...and more like...red…_

 _...with blue?_

Just off the highway, the police station passed by in the blink of an eye...and Anna let out a flummoxed whimper in between snores.

 _That one's Elsa. Me...my...feelings…_

 _...wish I wasn't bad...but there it is._

 _Orange and purple._

A ragged exhale...and a breathy, pleased whine. Anna shuffled right back against Rapunzel's bangs-teasing fingers.

 _A new power I have._

 _I know where you are...and...your color tells me…_

Teal eyes fluttered open, and for several moments, Anna stared...vacant and uncomprehending.

Chuckling softly, Rapunzel put her right hand back on the steering wheel and nodded at the expanse of highway ahead...as well as the mountain range way off in the distance. "We're on our way. Just passed the station. I know you were up late last night...go back to sleep, NaNa."

A blush, a hesitant nod, and Anna forced her eyes shut.

 _You could go back to doing that...and I'd enjoy it too much._

Bright colors flared again. Anna curled her toes in her sneakers and began to count the regularly-spaced bumps along the highway.

 _Maybe I'll feel less bad when I can just...just practice. Just focus on that and only that. Build up my cat-rescuing skills and maybe some day these colors just won't be here any more and and and…_

Brilliant red and yellow swirling into a luminescent orange. Fingers combing through hair.

 _...I couldn't ever forget these colors._


	6. Chapter 6

' _johN WICKS GUNS DONT OBEY THE LAWS OF PHYSICS'_

' _seriously the sequel is even WORSE ABout bullet count than the FiRst'_

' _the only good thinG ABOUT THis movie is the dOG'_

' _WOUld you like a dog RAPunZEL? we werE thinkiNg about gettinG ONe'_

' _havE fun with aNNa todaY'_

With an amused murmur, Rapunzel leaned across the center console and scanned Elsa's last few text messages.

"We gotta get you a new phone, honey. That random caps lock shit is just too much."

Anna awoke to a mouthful of duffel bag strap between her teeth...and Rapunzel gently shaking her shoulder. Anna rubbed her eyes, squinted at Rapunzel's cell phone screen, and snorted.

"If she doesn't like those movies, why does she keep watching them?"

Chuckling affectionately, Rapunzel pocketed her phone and shrugged. "We can ask when we go home later. Dollars to donuts she fell asleep on the couch again watching her least favorite movies." A moment later, she switched off the ignition, and gestured to the windshield.

"Here we are. Nothing but tall trees with sturdy branches. "Perfect for getting comfortable with this new...side...of you."

Redwoods and oak trees stretched up for hundreds of feet as numerous walking paths snaked in and out of the dense foliage.

Anna snatched the duffel bag, tumbled out of the passenger side door, and high-tailed it for the nearby public restroom.

 _Finally. A chance to really cut loose!_

* * *

Blinded by long, blonde hair blowing around her face and dangling several feet off the ground, **upside down** , Rapunzel fumbled for her buzzing cell phone. A strong gust of wind rolled through the forest, and she let out a giddy shriek as she swayed right along with the wind.

"Shit!"

Down went the phone, tumbling end over end as it plopped onto the leaf-carpeted forest floor.

" _Yes, hello. I'm calling from the Crenshaw High School Administrative Office. Is this..._ _ **oh**_ _, Rapunzel Corona? One of our nurses."_

Still rocking from side to side, Rapunzel bit back more laughter and flailed...all too far from her phone. She shot one last glance up at the thick, white webbing binding her ankles together and looped over the lowest branch of an oak tree.

"Um, yeah, that's me." Another airy giggle as blood rushed to her head and the tips of her hair brushed against the forest floor. "You didn't lose my note, right?"

"At that, the gruff, masculine voice on the other end of the line trailed off. Shuffling papers and the clatter of spilled pencils, before they replied in a halting tone. " _Religious observation. Bel...Bel-tane. That's the holiday?"_

Rapunzel cleared her throat, spat out a wad of blustery hair, and fidgeted until she managed to turn herself towards her phone again. "Build a bonfire and hug a tree. Not...not necessarily in that order."

A low chuckle on the other end. " _Anyway, I'm calling to check if you want me to send Anna's homework to your place, along with a student who lives nearby. Is...is she with you, now?"_

It didn't take long, or much straining, for Rapunzel to make out joyful whoops and the rustle of swaying branches far above. Leaves rained down like snowflakes. She snickered softly, then squeaked as her left Birkenstock sandal slipped off and fell to the ground.

"She's, um...getting wood. For a bonfire. Sure, send Na... **Anna's** homework by later. If we aren't back by then, her sister should be around to collect it."

Just then, Rapunzel's other sandal slid off, smacked against her cell phone, and ended the call.

* * *

What started as a simple climbing exercise, quickly became much more.

Hand over hand, Anna hauled herself fifteen yards up to the first branch of a massive redwood. With each tug, she tensed and flexed her fingers, marvelling at the durability and strength in each sheer grip.

 _It wasn't_ _ **this**_ _easy last week. Am I..._ _ **still**_ _...getting stronger?_

She quickly discovered that removing her sneakers allowed her stocking feet to find similarly solid purchase on the tree, and ensured that both her orange ski mask was pulled on tight... **and** her orange jumpsuit was firmly zipped up.

 _I can go faster._

And that's exactly what Anna did, arms and legs flapping as she clambered up another fifty yards. Joyful excitement coursed through her veins, and on the next available branch, she shuffled out...and stared down at the distant forest floor. Arms, which had been reflexively held out to her sides, suddenly dropped...and her awestruck grin grew.

 _No crazy vertigo? It just feels..._ _ **normal?!**_

The sight of another tree, and another thick branch several yards higher, sent Anna's stomach into a giddy flip-flop...and she licked her lips expectantly.

 _If I can do it down there. I can do it...up here._

A faint **whoosh** , and out of her right wrist zipped a thickly coiled web-line. It nailed the far branch, and Anna only hesitated for a moment.

 _I_ _ **can**_ _do this. This...is who I am now._

Left hand over right, gripping the web-line. With a giddy whine, Anna bent her knees and made ready to jump.

From down below came Rapunzel's encouraging holler. " **NaNa you forgot your helmet! But you look so good up there!** "

Face crimson, Anna glanced down...and tumbled right off of her branch. She shrieked miserably, and several blindly thrashing kicks sent her tumbling end over end as her web-line snaked around her waist and bound her arms to her sides.

 _ **Oh screw me, Baddie fucked up!**_

With a dizzy groan, Anna smacked against the redwood's trunk, yanked her web-line loose, and fell to the ground...managing to clobber every branch on her way down.

 _Smooth move, ex-lax. Guaranteed to impress any..._ _ **oh just zip it!**_

* * *

"Let me down!"

Aside from a ringing head and bits of bark plastered all over the orange jumpsuit, Anna found herself remarkably unscathed. She collided with the ground, squealed again as her body bounced and sailed into a nearby leaf-mound.

Bare hands had slid over arms, legs, and face, just to ensure they were all intact. The leaf pile shifted, and within seconds, Anna crawled out and staggered to her feet.

She yanked off her ski mask, ruffled a mess of leaves out of her hair, and cracked her neck before gazing up at the tree branches that would surely be filing assault charges.

 _I'm not just...tough._

A low, amazed murmur as Anna stared at her unblemished hands...and shivered as another strong gust of wind rushed against her sweat-dotted neck.

" _Holy...hot damn…_ "

Chest heaving and face crimson, Rapunzel bellowed at the top of her lungs. " **NANA. LET. ME. DOWN.** " Her fits of wriggling had turned into outright thrashing, and the panic in her voice was only matched by the spark of terror in her eyes.

Still awestruck, Anna wordlessly looped an arm around Rapunzel's back. One quick, well-aimed web glob split the hanging line neatly...and Rapunzel fell right into Anna's arms.

 _Oh._

Shiver.

 _Oh...wait._

Only then did Anna hear the vicious pounding of Rapunzel's heart. A trembling hand curled up and over Anna's left shoulder, squeezed, and offered several gingerly pats.

Just like that, Anna shivered as **her** heart dropped down into her stomach...and she swallowed thickly.

 _I'm sorry._

Warm breaths on her neck. A cheek pressed against hers.

"Put me...down...please?"

Rapunzel's raspy whimper made all the air rush out of Anna's lungs with a single, shaky **whoosh.** She nodded dumbly, did as told, and then nearly collapsed from the sudden wave of heat that rolled through her body.

 _Just holding you like that...wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong-ity bad and…_

Anna let out a flummoxed mewl as Rapunzel hooked a hand over her zippered collar and tugged gently as she herself crumpled to the ground. Deep, unsteady breaths followed.

 _You want to sit? We'll sit._

 _Just sit and that's it and that's_ _ **everything**_ _and…_

Strength wasn't needed...so strength fled from Anna's form. With an easy tug, she toppled right into Rapunzel's lap.

 _What's going on here? I did something...wrong._

Rapunzel chuckled dryly, shoulders shaking. She sniffled, both hands tangled in Anna's leaf-littered hair...searching. Combing.

 _But...what?_

"You're...you're really okay. Right?"

Anna gulped, teeth clamped down over her tongue lest she swallow it. She managed a meek nod. Eyes fell shut.

Another sniffle...but Anna didn't need to look, to know.

 _You're crying._

Giggling wetly, Rapunzel shook her head and furrowed her brow. "Now we **know** how tough you are. And how strong."

Anna let out a shaky breath, nodded again, and found something resembling a voice. "Uh-huh."

With that, Rapunzel cleared her throat and let her hands fall to her sides. A weak, pensive smile. "But that was a scary way to learn it. There's probably no point, but...wear your helmet today? For...me?"

Another nod from Anna, who curled a hand between the leaves and into the dirt below. Unable to muster the resolve to roll onto her back and stare up...she let her eyes fall shut again.

 _Orange. Orange. Orange._

 _I'll do better. For you._

The pair remained on the forest floor together for a few minutes more. It was only when Rapunzel's nearby phone began to buzz again, that she gently set Anna's head on a pile of leaves and shuffled over to get the latest.

"Um…"

Affectionate amusement in Rapunzel's tone. Anna cracked a wary eyelid.

"Looks like Elsa has visitors. Brought your homework along."

Anna chuckled weakly, rolled onto her back, and whined as she stretched out. "Wait...more than one person had to bring it?"

Rapunzel clicked her tongue, then began to rummage through the duffel bag in search of Anna's helmet. A playful smirk. "Looks like Mary...and Jane. Neat."

Anna groaned, rolled over, and mashed her face into the dried leaves.

 _Falling out of trees is way less stressful than everything else. Goddamnit._


End file.
